EforAll Awarded Cummings Grant. Lowell Nonprofit Receives Cummings Foundation Grant
For Immediate Release
Contact: Lianna Kushi, EforAll Lowell-Lawrence, (833) 336-7255 x 7005 lianna@eforall.org.
Contact: Alison Harding, Cummings Foundation, 781-932-7093, aeh@cummings.com
Lowell, May 29, 2020 – EforAll is one of 130 local nonprofits to receive grants for $100,000-$500,000 each through Cummings Foundation’s $20 Million Grant Program. The Lowell-based organization was chosen from a total of 738 applicants during a competitive review process. In addition EforAll is invited to be considered for a 10-year grant in Fall 2020.
EforAll is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Lowell, to help under-represented individuals successfully start and grow a business through intensive business training, mentorship and an extended professional support network. Programs are available in both English and Spanish. Lowell-Lawrence was the site of EforAll’s first program, which launched in 2012.
“Now more than ever, small businesses and entrepreneurs need our support,” said Lianna Kushi, Executive Director of the Lowell-Lawrence site. “With the award from the Cummings Foundation, we’ll be able to reach more under-represented individuals — particularly women, immigrants and people of color — and provide them with the right tools and support so they can build and grow a successful business and create jobs for the new economy.”
Of businesses started by EforAll participants, 74 percent are owned by women, 58 percent are owned by people of color, 46 percent are owned by immigrants and 39 percent are owned by people who were previously unemployed. (Statistics updated to reflect 2019 Entrepreneur Survey results).
The Cummings $20 Million Grant Program supports Massachusetts nonprofits that are based in and primarily serve Middlesex, Essex, and Suffolk counties. Through this place- based initiative, Cummings Foundation aims to give back in the area where it owns commercial buildings, all of which are managed, at no cost to the Foundation, by its affiliate, Cummings Properties. Founded in 1970 by Bill Cummings, the Woburn-based commercial real estate firm leases and manages 10 million square feet of debt-free space, the majority of which exclusively benefits the Foundation.
We have been impressed, but not surprised, by the myriad ways in which these 130 grant winners are serving their communities, despite the challenges presented by COV ID-19,”” said Joel Swets, Cummings Foundation’s executive director. “Their ability to adapt and work with their constituents in new and meaningful ways has an enormous impact in the communities where our colleagues and leasing clients live and work.”
Cummings Foundation has now awarded more than $280 million to greater Boston nonprofits. Social distancing requirements will prevent Foundation and grant winner representatives from convening for a reception at Trade Center 128 in Woburn, as planned, to celebrate the $20 million infusion into greater Boston’s nonprofit sector. Instead, Cummings Foundation expects hundreds of individuals to gather virtually for a modified celebration in mid-June. The Cummings $20 Million Grant Program resulted from a merger of the Foundation’s two flagship grant programs, $100K for 100 and Sustaining Grants.
The Foundation and its volunteers first identified 130 organizations to receive grants of at least $100,000 each. Among the winners are first-time recipients as well as nonprofits that have previously received Cummings Foundation grants. A limited number of this latter group of repeat recipients will be invited to make in-person presentations in the fall, when public health related circumstances allow, proposing that their grants be elevated to long- term awards. Thirty such requests will be granted in the form of 10-year awards ranging from $200,000 to $500,000 each.
The complete list of 130 grant winners is available at www.CummingsFoundation.org.
A great deal more information about Cummings Foundation is detailed in Bill Cummings’ self-written business book, “Starting Small and Making It Big: Hands-On Lessons in Entrepreneurship and Philanthropy.”The brand-new, and significantly updated, 6th edition is available on Amazon or cummings.com/book.
About EforAll
Entrepreneurship for All (EforAll) is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Lowell, that partners with communities nationwide to help under-represented individuals successfully start and grow a business through intensive business training, mentorship and an extended professional support network. Programs are available in both English and Spanish. EforAll is currently available in the following MA communities: Berkshire County, Cape Cod, Fall River, Holyoke, Lawrence, Lowell, Lynn, New Bedford, and Roxbury as well as Longmont CO. To learn more about EforAll, please visit eforall.org.
About Cummings Foundation
Woburn-based Cummings Foundation, Inc. was established in 1986 by Joyce and Bill Cummings. The Foundation directly operates its own charitable subsidiaries, including New Horizons retirement communities in Marlborough and Woburn, and Veterinary School at Tufts, LLC in North Grafton. Additional information is available at www.CummingsFoundation.org.
Entrepreneurs & Small Business Owners: Claire Mosenfelder, Over the Spoon, Bob Cuesta, Empanada Dada, Ines Antigua, U-Pearl, Thomas Taylor, Grateful Taste
Entrepreneurs & Small Business Owners: Claire Mosenfelder, Over the Spoon, Bob Cuesta, Empanada Dada, Ines Antigua, U-Pearl, Thomas Taylor, Grateful Taste
EforAll awarded Cummings Grant
Lowell nonprofit receives Cummings Foundation grant